Bad Kids
by Paradoxilla
Summary: Caleb Knight had always portrayed himself as a man people could trust; as someone who people could lean on, or be able to help them in a pinch. However, not many people knew that not only did Cal have a little brother, but a past shrouded in secrecy.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone! This an AU where Ethan never arrived with Cal in S28(?), and was in fact, not with Cal for most of his life (for something that will be explained later on). This is a relatively dark fic, so be careful. Other than that, enjoy!**

* * *

Cal sat in the staff room, a smirk playing on his face as Max and Lofty argued over who would get the last digestive. Unbeknownst to them, Robyn had snuck past them, and managed to craftily gobble it up, infuriating the two young men. The joking atmosphere dissipated as Lily walked in. Cal's smirk remained, but he hopped up, following his three friends, while Lily began making a mug of tea.

"Dr Knight, you have crumbs on your shirt," Lily commented without missing a beat, her eyes not leaving the mug "best not look unprofessional in front of Ms. Beauchamp." Cal's eyes immediately descended to his chest, where the crumbs sat. Blushing, and thanking Lily, he ran his hand over his shirt, while Max sniggered at her comment. A quick swipe to the back of Max's head quelled the laughter, but Max still had a smile on his face.

Cal walked towards the cubicles, his face now impassive, where he was dealing with a boy with a broken arm. As he approached the bed, he saw the woman placing a hand on her somewhat rounded stomach, showing she was pregnant, while the little boy was on the verge of tears, clutching his leg.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Knight, and who're you," Cal asked gently, bending down to examine the boy's leg "ooh, that's looks sore! How did this happen?" The boy shied away, frightened, but the mother smiled in an apologetic fashion.

"Sorry, he was playing out in the road, and I backed into him," the mother confessed, somewhat ashamed "I didn't see him of course!" Cal merely smiled, and his eyes descended from the woman's thin face to her protruding stomach.

"So how far along are you," Cal asked with a smile, and the woman's eyes widened, her mouth agape, and Cal's grin fell within seconds "oh no, I'm so sorry-"

"I'm only pullin' your leg," the woman cackled, and Cal felt relief flood his system, and the young boy giggled at his mother's antics "I'm five and a half months. Feel terrible, but that's what comes with it." Cal nodded, his fingers gently prodding the boys legs.

"Do you have any kids," the woman inquired "you're a good lookin' bloke, I'm sure you could find a pretty wife if you want." Cal smiled at her compliments, while her son's face contorted in pain at the sensation in his leg.

"No, no kids," Cal shrugged "not at that point yet!"

"What about siblings? Brothers or sisters," the woman asked curiously, and Cal's face immediately turned impassive, and his jaw clenched. He looked down, a feeling of guilt building in his gut.

"Um..no, no siblings," Cal said, a layer of sweat now settling on his forehead, feeling as though he was being interrogated by the woman, and he stood up abruptly "I-I'm sorry, I need to take a minute." He rushed away, quickly sending Robyn to deal with the mother and son, who looked shocked at this development.

Cal walked into an isolated hallway, covering his face with his hands, breathing heavily into his hands. It had been 15 years, why was he so worked up over this? He should be over it by now.

And yet, he wasn't.

Quickly storming out of the hallway, and barging his way into the staff room, much to the surprise and irritation of Mrs. Beauchamp. He ignored her demands, and grabbed his coat, striding towards the doors, everyone questioning him. He didn't care about their inquiries, he instead continued on his way.

Getting in his car, he sped out of the hospital, secretively glad he didn't accidentally run into an ambulance. He had gone through this routine a million times, but every time he did, weight always pressed down on his chest, almost as if someone was sitting on his chest.

"Just turn back," Cal whispered to himself, yet his body did the opposite, as he pressed down on the accelerator "just turn back..." He knew he had no will to do as he said, and resigned himself to go to where he was headed anyway. In the distance, the building started to materialise, almost an eyesore in the middle of the picturesque countryside.

As he parked in the space, he noted the lack of cars. He shouldn't be shocked, many people had abandoned their family after doing something abhorrent, but something of this scale didn't match up at all. Cal however, knew he had an obligation after what he had done.

He went through the formalities, the pat downs, everything, before he was given the all clear, and led to a small room, devoid of other human presence. It was cold, and didn't give the impression of being cared for. The corners of the room were homes of dust piles, and cobwebs populated the upper corners.

Suddenly, the door behind the partition in front of Cal opened, and his brother walked in. His little brother, Ethan, who didn't look at home at all. The orange jumpsuit clung to his thin frame, his face void of any kind of warmth, and his eyes were emotionless. He glared at Cal, but sat down, and grabbed the phone beside him, Cal doing the same.

"Hi Ethan," Cak immediately spoke, trying to convey as much feeling as he could into his few words "figured I hadn't seen you in a while.."

"Four months, Cal," Ethan spat, no innocence left in his tone "four months, that you couldn't bother to see me-"

"It wasn't like that-"

"Then what was it," Ethan growled, and when the guard started, stepping forward, Ethan waved his hand to deter the guard "what was so important that you forgot about me? Your only family left? Am I not important enough? You got a bimbo at home to cater to?" Cal felt his blood boil, but quashed his feelings.

"Cal," Ethan began a new sentence, which was now filled with vulnerability "I'm getting out. In a week." Cal's eyes widened slightly, and his heart began beating quickly, his brain beginning to panic.

"B-But you got twenty years," Cal stuttered, shaking his head "someone died Ethan!"

"No, the fire killed someone," Ethan spat "I just started it...apparently."

"B-But how are you getting out early," Cal demanded, and the guard gave him an acidic look, causing Cal to quell his anger instantly "you still have a five years!"

"Good behaviour," Ethan shrugged, and then stood up, but then leaned over the counter "be here; next Thursday, 2:00. Don't forget about me this time." And with those words, Ethan left Cal sitting there in shock.

Cal felt like he was in a waking coma as he exited the prison, almost falling over due to his crazily palpatating heart. As he fell into his car, he placed his elbow on the steering wheel, and placed his face in his hands. He remembered how the fire happened..although some details might've gotten twisted.

* * *

 _"Ethan, your food will be ready in a few minutes, stop asking," an eighteen year old Cal yelled, while a thirteen year old Ethan sighed "just go to your room or something!" Ethan, rolling his eyes, stormed upstairs while Cal contained his anger._

 _Cal simply stirred the boiling pot, trying to find something to end his boredom. Luckily, that came in the form of a text from a girl, which snatched Cal's attention instantly. Dropping the spoon in the pot, knowing it would only take a minute, grabbed his phone and sat down on the table, grinning as he read over the text._

 _However, it only took a couple of moments, before flames started to erupt from the stove._


	2. Chapter 2

Cal sat in his car as the clock neared pick up time. His heart was hammering beneath his rib cage, and his head was a mess. _Just turn back, just turn back..._ It was a tempting thought, but he knew he couldn't ignore Ethan, even if he had the will to do so. Cal's eyes travelled to the formidable building near him. Barbed wires sat atop eerie chain link fences and the image of the prison held no warmth for the adult man.

Cal, without thinking, jumped out of the car. He knew if he didn't do it then he wouldn't have done it at all. He stood there, stationery for a few moments, before he felt like someone was watching him. He whipped around to see a large tattooed man glaring at him through the chain link fence with a sick grin before the stranger groped himself shamelessly.

 _Ethan had to share building with these people, and it's your fault._

Shaking away his guilty thoughts, he made his way to the entrance of the building, walking against the bitter, irritating air. The doors were heavy against his aching joints but as soon as they shut behind him, he was treated to a warm air, which felt soothing to his cold body.

Walking awkwardly up to the front desk, he said "I'm here to pick up Ethan Hardy?" The police officer gave him a cold gaze, before slowly reaching under the desk and pulling up a phone and putting his ear to it.

"Yeah, yeah...pickup for Hardy? Yeah...oh ok...yeah, yeah," the guard muttered cryptically into the phone, before placing it back down with an unnaturally loud bang "first you have to visit the doctor of the prison, Doctor Maddox." Cal nodded and the guard at the door opened the gate and lead him down an unwelcoming hallway, where their footsteps echoed loudly.

"Any reason why I need to go to the doctor's office," Cal inquired, and the officer rolled her eyes.

"Same reason as anyone," the officer said monotonously "to make sure vitals are ok, to keep up with any infections, all that stuff." Cal nodded absentmindedly, and was left again in silence until they reached a dilapidated door, and Cal was jostled in by the guard.

"Hello, you must be Caleb," a dark skinned woman smiled, turning around to meet him. And near her, for the first time in years and years, was Ethan, not separated by a partition "sit down Mr. Knight." Cal did as she said and Ethan smirked as Cal sat down awkwardly.

"So, we have run some tests," the woman said and Cal saw Ethan's expression fall from jesting to somber, and Cal's stomach promptly turned to ice "and I'm sorry to say, some of it has turned up negative results."

"He's a doctor, so don't dumb it down for him," Ethan muttered, crossing his arms, and Dr. Maddox smiled uncomfortably.

"Yes...er, Mr. Knight I'm sorry to say but it seems your brother has HIV," Dr. Maddox revealed. Time seemed to slow down for Cal as Ethan simply scoffed. Cal was silent for a few moments, before he vocalised his thoughts.

"H-How," Cal asked weakly and Dr. Maddox paused before speaking matter of factly.

"As a prison, we have a limited number of staff," Dr. Maddox said "and as a result, we cannot regulate prisoner-prisoner relations-"

"You mean sex," Cal roared, startling both Ethan and Dr. Maddox and Cal frowned "I-I'm sorry, but..sex? In here?" Ethan nodded, as if learning that he could be dead within twenty years was a minor detail.

"I have a file here for all your information," Dr. Maddox said and handed Cal a thin file that had a few solitary pages peeking out of it "it has all the information you need about doctors visits, injuries, infections, everything like that. Other than that, that's everything. So thank you, and goodbye." Cal thanked her in return and Ethan provided her with a hasty goodbye, before swinging the door open and being greeted with a guard.

She started to lead them back towards the entrance, and Cal, amidst the silence, was plagued by negative thoughts. Would Ethan die in a few years? Would he find out about Cal and the fire? Would he turn back to a life of crime?

Cal was so preoccupied by his thoughts that he didn't realise the guard was attempting to talk to him until Ethan jabbed him in the side, startling him. The guard, visibly unimpressed, handed Cal a thick stack of paperwork and a pen.

"Paperwork," the guard said, having said this hundreds of times before "personal information we need." Cal nodded thankfully, and began to fill in everything, while Ethan sat down on a nearby bench, and began staring out of a window, a kind he wasn't accustomed to. It didn't have bars on the other side of it.

After a few minutes, Cal concluded the agonisingly boring paperwork, and handed it to the guard who stuffed it underneath the counter. "Thank you," the guard said "alright, Hardy, you're free to go." Ethan sprang from the bench and only calmed himself as he entered into the grips of the freezing air.

The two of them clamoured into Cal's car, however, Cal sat there, stationery for a while, his mind only now grasping the totality of the situation. Ethan was out. His criminal brother was out.

 _You're the criminal here._

Cal was only brought out of his comatose state by Ethan gesturing to the road in front of them. Apologising, Cal started the car, and left the car park with his heart clenched and his head dizzy with fear.

* * *

 _Cal stared at an unconscious Ethan with red eyes. He had been crying for the past while. Their father was dead. He had perished in the blaze. A blaze Cal has caused with that misplacement of a tea towel. Ethan was now on the verge of death, having gotten a concussion in all the chaos, courteousy of a kitchen countertop._

 _However, despite Cal's worst fears, it was with a groan that Ethan awoke. Cal jumped to his feet, and was about to tend to Ethan's every need and apologise for being so stupid, however, Cal's eyebrows furrowed as Ethan began to speak._

 _"C-Cal? W-Where am I," Ethan coughed weakly "what's happened?" Cal was taken aback for a moment before he could speak._

 _"E-Ethan, do you not remember what happened," Cal asked in shock and Ethan shook his head "t-there was a fire."_

 _"A fire," Ethan gasped, sitting up as best he could without irritating a poppy bruise which sat on his temple "is mum ok? Is dad?"_

 _"D-Dad...Dad is...gone," Cal choked on his own words as they left his mouth "h-he died in the the fire.." Ethan stared at his lap for a moment, before asking, on the verge of tears:_

 _"How did it happen?" And out of fear of repercussions for his actions, Cal said one sentence that started it all._

 _"You left a tea towel near an open flame," Cal said "you caused it."_


	3. Chapter 3

Cal opened the door to his apartment with a solemn expression, with Ethan standing behind him. Ethan's gaunt face stared in wonder at the decorated hallway. The prison walls were white stone, and the lights were dreadfully bright and protected by a cage to prevent any damage done to them.

Cal opened the door and Ethan pushed past him, shocked at the modern faculties. State of the art washing machine, oven, dryer..it all looked so good. "So...how many women did you have to sleep with to pay for this," Ethan chuckled and Cal refused to meet his eyes. Ethan took no notice however, and was inspecting each room with particular scrutiny.

"Jesus Cal," Ethan whistled in admiration "this is swanky-y." Cal finally met Ethan's eyes and felt his breath catch in his throat. His eyes weren't the same. When he was younger, they were filled with a childlike curiosity, a desire to know. But now they were clouded by some dark emotion that Cal couldn't pinpoint.

"Er..Ethan, can we sit down for a moment," Cal said gently and Ethan nodded and sat tenderly down on the couch "Ethan, we have to talk about your...diagnosis."

"You mean how I have AIDS," Ethan said bluntly and Cal's stomach turned to ice and he exhaled deeply.

"HIV, Ethan, HIV."

"Wow, very official, aren't you," Ethan said "then again you are a doctor."

"Ethan, I'm serious," Cal said "you have to go for check ups, get medication..." Cal trailed off, preoccupied by how Ethan was sitting. He was leaning to one side, and relying on the arm of the chair for balance.

"Ethan, are you ok," Cal asked and Ethan's eyes met his.

"Yes," Ethan said a bit too quickly "anyway, yeah medication-"

"You're hurt, aren't you," Cal said, and Ethan rolled his eyes.

"No, Cal, I'm not," Ethan said with a humourless laugh "if I was injured I'd've gotten treated before I got out."

"Then what..," Cal blushed when he realised the answer "you..had sex didn't you.."

"Yeah," Ethan said "ten points for you!"

"Ethan, are you-"

"I'm straight," Ethan said immediately "but when you're in there-" he cocked his head to the left generally, as if the prison were right next to him "-it doesn't matter."

"Wait, you were raped," Cal exclaimed and Ethan let out a chuckle, chilling Cal and making the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

"No Cal," Ethan explained "I consented. I'm not the strongest or the most threatening, and in there, that's a death sentence. So I got protection from the strongest and the most threatening." Cal bit his lip.

"So you were-"

"Let's talk about someone else," Ethan suggested, and stood up with a slight wobble "let's talk about what I'm going to do now."

"Well..what do you think you should do," Cal asked and Ethan looked at the wall in deep concentration before turning to Cal with a smile.

"Get a job," Ethan said "it's the best thing to do according to TV! You know, the recently released convict gives back to the community, how poignant it would be!" Cal hid a reluctant smile.

"So what will you do," Cal asked "any jobs you can think of?"

"Well, no," Ethan admitted, but leaned towards Cal "but you have a job. And surely they are looking for someone to do SOMETHING." Cal looked at the floor.

"Uh, yeah," Cal said without meeting Ethan's eyes "t-they're pretty ok for everything.." Ethan's face fell. Cal felt bad, but he couldn't have people knowing about Ethan, could he?

"Oh, right," Ethan said, and looked around the apartment "so..where do I sleep?" Cal hadn't even thought of that.

"For now, the couch I guess," Cal muttered and Ethan smiled.

"Alright, I'll go get a blanket or something," Ethan said, and Cal watched him retreat to Cal's room. The instant he was alone, Cal placed his face into his hands and let his tears flow freely.

His brother didn't remain. His shy, intelligent and hopeful-for-the-future brother, was gone. Replaced by this thin, gaunt faced, pale, sardonic and indifferent shell of himself.

Cal had doomed him to a life of suffering. He had doomed him to a prison life. Cal had _stolen_ his life. Cal should be where Ethan was. Cal should be the one who just got out of prison. But he wasn't.

And for that, in that moment, Cal felt like the worst human being on the Earth.

* * *

 _"Has the jury reached a verdict," the judge asked, his aged face staring at the foreman of the jury, a moustached man with grey eyes. A young Ethan turned his face to meet Cal, who offered him only a weak smile._

 _"We have, your honour," the foreman spoke and the judge nodded routinely._

 _"Do you, the jury, find Ethan Hardy, guilty or not guilty of reckless conduct in relation to arson, resulting in the death of one Gregory Hardy," the judge spoke and the room collectively held their breath as the foreman opened his mouth._

 _"Guilty."_

 _Ethan let out a sob. Cal had told him to lie, to deny it instead of admitting it. And now, he was to gain more years for it._

 _Cal saw his mother crumple into herself, tears rolling down her bony cheeks. Her husband and son now gone from her life, her main priority was Cal._

 _Cal, meanwhile, was staring, shocked at the result. Cal had given him a glowing character report, and had planted seeds of doubt in the jury's mind. How could they still find him guilty?_

 _"Take the defendant to the cells where he will await sentencing," the judge ordered and Ethan was lead down a few steps, before he threw a look at Cal._

 _And to this day, Cal remembers it as the day the real Ethan died._

* * *

 **So** _**sorry for the...**_ ** _ridiculously_** _**late update but better late than never right? As you can tell, this will be a supremely dark fic, so be prepared. R &R, and thanks for reading xx**_


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